Abheet Gupta

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30 years ago a film named Parinda shook the Bollywood as well as the enitre Indian cinema industry and changed it forever. Before I start with the review and analysis, I'd like to describe the film with Nana's iconic dialogue - "Accha Hai, Bahut Accha Hai..." Parinda (1989) is a film which revolutionized the Indian cinema and bought immense fame to director Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Padma Shree Nana Patekar. Parinda is one of a kind film which relies heavily on realism and consequentiality. The tagline of the film reads "the most powerful film ever made" and I would be a fool to deny that! At the time when it was released Bollywood was experimenting a lot and many unique and excellent films were created like Angoor (1982), Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (1983), Mr. India (1987) or Salaam Bombay (1988). Brilliant pieces of work were rising from every genre of cinema and then came Parinda. Boasting an excellent cast ensemble, Parinda is a story of two brothers Karan and Kishan played by Anil Kapoor and Jackie Shroff who get trapped in the world of organized crime headed by Nana's Anna. (Wow, that's just a switch of alphabets xd) Also dragged in this hideous game are Paro (Madhuri Dixit) and her cop brother Prakash (Anupam Kher) who are Karan's childhood friends. The plot becomes more and more enthralling and rousing as the film moves forward and keeps you wondering what's gonna happen next! The brilliant direction by Vidhu Vinod Chopra and the passionate performances by the cast keep you on the edge of your seats. I wont say that the film is totally unpredictable as modern audiences have seen a lot of such films and therefore may have certain ideas of what may happen but considering the time it was made, it is an undebatable masterpiece! It laid the foundations of the gangster genre in India and served as an inspiration for many modern filmmakers like Anurag Kashyap. Apart from the excellent direction and screenplay, much of the credit for the film's success goes to the powerful performances by the cast. Nana Patekar absolutely outshines everyone with what can still be considered his career best performance. His dialogue delivery, his expressions, his body language, everything's top notch and his sheer passion and commitment towards his psychotic yet reasonable character is commendable! It is rightly said - "A film is only as good as its villain". Jackie Shroff also delivered his career best performance in Parinda and would have been appreciated an awful lot more if Nana wasn't in this film. Anil Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit also delivered strong performances and because of all this Parinda excelled in conveying what it wanted to. Parinda is also a technical triumph with masterclass cinematography and editing. The framing, composition and lighting used in the shots is par excellence and the editing is absolutely seemless which makes the film a visual delight. The soundtrack and score is jolly, romantic, thrilling and sad as and when required and succeeds in conveying the right emotions at the right time. Song album of Parinda is also quite decent but comprises of only 4 songs. Anyways, Asha Bhosle and Suresh Wadkar's "Tumse Milke" alone is so melodious and soothing that it won't disappoint you. It is a story of destiny, karma, politics, love and deceit, all wrapped into one thrilling and nail-biting narrative which is supported by brilliant visuals and stellar performances. If you want to know where the modern web series like Mirzapur and films like Gangs of Wasseypur draw their roots from, Parinda is the film to watch. One Bollywood film like Parinda is worth tons of foreign films for me! Definitely 5/5!

David Michôd's The King is about young Henry V who has to deal with deceit, war and treachery on becoming the new King of England in 15th century after the death of his father and brother. As a young man with peace as his soul aim, he is caught between the ideals of his advisors and his own. The film is a gripping drama about war and peace which questions the very existence of these two terms and how they are intertwined with each other. Appropriately casted as King Henry V, Timothėe Chalamet delivers a career high performance with brilliant dialogues and rousing speeches. Joel Edgerton's Falstaff acts the most loyal advisor-cum-friend of King Henry and delivers very powerful and motivational lines throughout the film, which just like King Henry also have a deep impact on the viewers. Just like any other period drama, The King finds it's antagonist in the French king's unintelligent son played very sillily yet hilariously by Robert Pattinson. His over exaggerated accent was fun to watch but its sure to give your ears a bad time. Unfortunately Lily Rose-Depp doesn't get much screentime but her character is highly important for the final few decisions King Henry makes. Sean Harris' William is the mysterious character whose motivations and actions are hard to decipher throughout the film. But that's not all. The direction, cinematography and color grading of the film is worth an applaud and even if someone doesn't find the characters that interesting, the visuals alone are worth talking this ride for. The visuals are amazingly supported by a thrilling and stirring background score which will surely stick with the viewer's mind for a long time. To sum up, it is a very thrilling and goosebumps inducing watch which is sure to make your weekend more enjoyable. It is available now on Netflix for all; so movie heads, plugin your headphones and get on this epic historical ride!

God this movie was so satisfying! Packed with brilliant performance by Aaron Paul, thrilling action, excellent recalls and all the amazing cameos of almost every significant breaking bad character in Jesse's life. It's a praise worthy follow up to a series which has set the bar so high that I don't think anything would ever be able to match it in this particular genre. This movie has got beautiful cinematography and is much much more than what was expected. Closes Jesse's character arc as well as Breaking Bad on the whole with sheer excellence. Must watch!

Some movies are made purely for entertainment purposes and are full of jaw-dropping and cinematic moments. Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) is one of those movies which is low on substance but overcompensates in its story telling technique. Director George Miller brings us a high-octane thrill ride where just like its main character Max, audience too is never at rest and is left wanting for more. The director tries to bring forward a harsh world set in a dystopian future which is somewhat a mirror to our very own world or what it could become if everyone is reduced to a single instinct which is survival, just as Tom Hardy’s Max said in the opening of the film. Mad Max: Fury Road is a technical triumph. From brilliant cinematography to flawless editing, this movie has all what is required from an action blockbuster and more. The cinematographer of the film John Seale deserves a special applause for providing a wholesome variety of camera angle and movements in his shots which made the movie a visual delight. There is one specific shot where it looks like a sand dune but turns out to be Max’ head covered in sand. Such creative shots are what make this movie stand out as the viewers experience an awe factor while watching them unfold on screen. Another praise-worthy element is the editing of the film done by Margaret Sixel who later went on to win an academy award for the same. Maintaining the continuity of such an action thriller is always a very tough task but the editing was almost flawless. The colour grading of the film is so appropriate and at time so overwhelming that one is almost transported to this fictional world while watching the film. Apart from this the reduced frame rate during majority of the movie made many sequences clumsy which is good in this case because the movie is all about displaying that how crazy and chaotic dystopian society could be. It adds to the viewing experience as the audiences can actually feel what the characters must be feeling. But for making the audiences relate to the characters so well, majority of the credit goes to the lead cast of the film. Tom Hardy’s hollow and desperate Max, Charlie Theron’s hopeful Furiosa and Nicholas Hoults’ misguided Nux are the three core characters of the film. Each of them receive significant character developments throughout the movie and in the end find the right paths for their respective future which are satisfying for the audience as well. Hugh Keays-Bryne’s Immortan Joe is another important element of the film as his character was a true interpretation of the tyrants which everyone fears may take over the functioning of the world someday. All of them played their characters with so much dedication and realism that it sold every single scene of the film. Apart from all this, the soundtrack of the film was appropriate as well and added the element of thrill to it. Choosing hard rock with over usage of electric guitar was totally what the film demanded which justified both, the craziness which plot wanted to display as well the action thriller genre of the film. Mad Max: Fury Road is one of a kind dystopian future based action film which has the ability to leave the audience spellbound and fuel adrenaline throughout their bodies without compromising with its unique plot and realism.

After an astounding Whiplash (2014), director Damien Chazelle is back with yet another awe-inspiring tale of music and passion in the form of La La Land which stars Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone in lead roles. As magical as the title suggests, the film takes viewers on a phenomenal ride of love and ambition but without turning a blind eye to the harsh realities of life. Why I say this is because the choices the characters make in this film have realistic and often heart-breaking consequences. The plot of the movie may feel old school at times but the beauty of this movie lies in its wonderful execution and powerful performances by the lead cast. The movie has a variety of brilliantly executed shots including an over 5 minute one shot opening sequence as well as the beautiful ending sequence all thanks to the cinematographer of the film, Linus Sandgren. Apart from the camera angles and the movements, multiple shots have beautiful backgrounds as well as appropriate lighting which do justice to the main theme of the movie as well as that particular sequence. Talking more about technicalities of the film, the use of different kinds of lights especially spotlights is done to highlight the passion and commitment of the main characters towards their respective talents. The editing and colour grading of the movie is master class and honestly no less was expected from the immensely talented Academy Award winner Tom Cross, who reunited with Damien Chazelle after Whiplash. Apart from the direction and technicalities, what makes this film one of the best musicals of our generation are the charming and exceptional performances by Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone. One could simply feel the chemistry between these two gifted actors on screen and relate to it pretty well. Both of them play their parts with utmost brilliance and sincerity. Also, J.K. Simmons’ inclusion was like a starter pack for those who haven’t seen Whiplash. The music and the songs of the film were bound to be great as it was yet again in the capable hands of Justin Hurwitz but the fact that Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling sang their own songs made the movie even more relatable and enhanced the experience. The main aspect of life which the film wants to highlight is that life is not a fairy tale and the consequences of every decision a person makes often have a great deal of impact on their lives in a realistic environment. The movie is a spectacle both in terms of visual appeal as well as the sound appeal and is bound to make you cheer up, sing, laugh and cry, all within its just over 2 hours of run time.

The best thing about Kill Bill series is that unlike most movies or series out there, it delivers what it promised in vol 1 and that is vendetta! It has some of the best action sequences that I have ever seen especially ending sequence of vol 1! Powerful performances by Uma Thurman, David Carradine and Michael Madsen make this revenge saga all the mkre engaging and realistic. If you have a taste for action, martial arts or Tarentino stuff, I strongly recommend this saga!

13 years since it's release and it is still one of my favourite bollywood movie. There is something about it; it may be a brilliant cast ensemble, a funny script, a unique concept, significant character developments or all of them! It's uniqueness is quite evident from it's name itself. If you haven't seen this movie yet and you are a foreigner or a 10 year old, that's acceptable but if you are none of these two, you gotta watch it! It a bloody perfect movie!

Hmmm. Just 0k... I would say the story telling technique of this movie was an insult to our epic achievement and was a cliche bollywood melodrama. The real movie was wrapped up in last 20 minutes. So very disappointed with the direction, story telling and VFX... I mean VFX of 1 st Star Wars movie were better... But still 0k to watch. I'd say watch a documentary on Mangalyaan instead.. Obviously Batla House is way better...